Is social media uplifting or crushing?

Easy Target

Let’s examine the easy target of social media. Social media is flooded with people’s own egos wanting to be stroked, and not about uplifting other people. In so many ways, it is about asking people to look at a life and how wonderful it is compared to theirs.

“Look at me. Look how good I am, how rich I am, how together I am, how brilliant my family is, how big my businesses are, how clever I am, how many followers I have, and on and on it goes.”

Protection

We must protect ourselves and if you’re a parent, talk to your children about social media. How it is human nature to put our best in front of the world and hide the reality of the struggles that sit behind most people’s lives. It is incredible that so many people have productive and fulfilling lives, but remember that nobody escapes challenges, problems, disappointments, and relationships that go through difficult times. It would be helpful if people posted about the reality of their lives more often, but strangely, it is not what we want to see. This is the same reason that all advertising focuses on all the beautiful things and feelings that you will have if you buy or use their products.

Regardless, it is our responsibility to understand human nature. It is our responsibility to enjoy social media but keep it in the context of human nature, which includes bias from which none of us can escape.

The Message

The messaging that is put forward is always bias towards the beliefs that the writer or presenter is giving and no matter how hard they try it is impossible to be completely unbiased because ultimately, we all have an opinion about anything, and these feelings are stronger if we really care about a subject. I cannot stress how important it is for you to read and watch videos of different opinions about controversial topics to balance out in your own mind what you think, and research the organisations or people behind statements to see if they’ve been paid or making money out of their position.

Business Opportunities

Social media has done wonderful things for business and given hundreds of thousands of people an opportunity to build a business online. Because of this and the ability to communicate messages, ideas and share is the reason that I think that on the balance in social media is more positive for the world than negative. Whilst it is more difficult to judge whether a product or a person is genuinely online with experience, we all stop to feel what is authentic and what is fake.

However, if someone is putting genuine content out there intending to help others improve their lives with information and perspectives that help and lift people’s spirits, that is different. Whilst it is more difficult online to know if someone is genuine, it is my belief that when you follow someone, you quickly get a sense of their intentions.

Famous People

This includes several famous people who are making a lot of money, but in listening to them and who they associate with and talk to, you get a sense that their work is there to help, yet there are others where you just fill the money machine that sits behind everything they do, even though the words say different. One clue is that the less genuine rely on consensus to convince you they are there for you.

They continually refer to the millions that follow them and how they have helped them, and if it is good enough for them, it is definitely good enough for you. The good guys are more understated and rely on you deciding yourself whether to buy from them. It is not different from the pushy real-life salesperson versus the person who explains how a product improves your life.

Facebook Psychologists

Finally, there is a reason Facebook employs psychologists to work with engineers to hook people into staying on their platforms and love nothing better than mindless scrolling that can eat away hours but also break down our defences so that we become more vulnerable to all the advertising that brings in the billions of dollars in revenue. I think far more people are noticing the dangers of spending hours on social media that make us less productive, less interactive with other human beings and numb to reality. The meta verse is another attempt to keep us spending money on platforms and to live virtually and I question how healthy this will be.

The good, the bad and the ugly

All technology can be used for good or to damage, so it is up to the individual to use it smartly and healthily. Instinctively, we know when we are indulging too long on our phones and earn awareness to make sure that we keep a reasonable balance most of the time. I did an experiment and took myself off social media for one month. I did not post or look at it and deleted the apps. Amazingly, I did not get one message asking where I disappeared to or if I was okay. That gave me the confidence that in the big scheme of life, social media is only important if we think it is.

Control

We are in control, no matter how hard companies work to addict us to where we need help to stop living most of our life virtually. My suggestion is to monitor your usage like any other entertainment product, so it is an uplifting experience without feeling the crushing comparison pressure or the constant urge to post new information.

We choose whether to be crushed or uplifted by social media and we ensure young people remain aware of having this choice!

Written by

David Sammel